Home Calling (girlxgirl) ON HOLD

Chapter 3

Catherine woke up quite early from the restless sleep. She had weird dreams of her parents the whole night. Stretching on the mattress she momentarily forgot where she was. Her body felt a bit stiff from the uncomfortable position she slept in, but she got used to that by now. Rubbing the sleep away, she got up from the bed. She passed quickly by her parents' old room, not wanting to stir any more unpleasant memories. She opened the squeaky door to the restroom only to be welcomed by an odor of stuffy, stale air. The restroom was bare, the bathtub a bit rusty and grimy.

She repeated the process from yesterday, running the tap till the water cleansed. She went back to her room and grabbed a change of clothes and a small bag with toiletries. Washing the previous day off of herself she changed into a simple pair of jeans and a v-neck shirt. She didn't have many clothes in her bag, considering she was wearing her uniform most often.

Pulling her shoulder length black hair into a pony tail she studied her features in the smudged mirror. She was happy with her appearance. Despite the circles under her eyes, she was happy with the image she reflected. Catherine wasn't vain but she was apprehensive of her own beauty. However, at this point she didn't consider it as something important as she did years ago. Her sharp blue eyes bore into her own reflection as if challenging herself. After a minute she allowed herself a small, pursed smile as she saw no traces of that stupid, shallow girl she used to see when she looked in the mirror.

Returning back to her room she folded her uniform carefully, and lain it on the chair. Picking up her purse, and checking if she had all the necessities she went out of the house. It was still quite early in the morning, and still quiet. Catherine hated this soundlessness, it gave her chills. Locking the door behind herself, she directed herself towards the burger joint her mother worked at. She could ask about her there and also have some breakfast on the way.

***

Catherine was not entirely surprised by the things she learned about her mother. She didn't have much trouble finding what happened to her mom. Since Carlinton was a godforsaken dump the main entertainment was gossip. One of her mother's co-workers that Catherine actually recognized divulged the entire story to Catherine, probably adding some sensationalist details.  As she explained it to Catherine in a phony emphatic voice, her mother ran away three years ago with some truck driver she fell in love with. Apparently their family have been the talk of the town, first Catherine and then her mother.

"But tell me honey, whatever happened to you?" the woman leaned towards Catherine, her eyes sparkling with the excitement at the possibility of hearing fresh gossip.

"I should go, thank you for your help." Catherine brusquely answered, completely disregarding the question and the look of dismay on the other woman's face.

"But—"

Catherine didn't hear the rest as she pushed open the jingly door and exited back on the street. Her thoughts couldn't help but to wander towards her mother. Catherine hoped she was safe and happy wherever she was.

***

It was early afternoon when Catherine returned to the house. Her feet were a bit sore from so much walking but she wasn't the one to complain, not anymore. She ordered a new mattress at the only store that sold furniture in the town so at least she wouldn't have to sleep on that grimy mattress tonight. She also bought some groceries as well as some cleaning products.

I will probably spend the rest of my day swiping the damn place, she thought to herself as she dumped the stuff on the counter. Immediately she put on some gloves, armed herself with a mop and started cleaning the place.

After a couple of hours she cleaned the majority of the house. She polished all the counters in the kitchen, cleaned the floor, and drove away the dust from the living room. She opened all the windows to let some air in and drive away the lingering smell of rotten food. She cleaned the dust from her old room, and hung her combat and work uniform neatly in the old closet. Now she only had to wait for the mattress, and clean the windows. Windows could wait, Catherine huffed in fatigue. She didn't go to her parents' room yet, and she decided she wouldn't. Some things are better left buried, she mused to herself.

She pulled out an already prepared sandwich she bought in a grocery store and cool beer from the recently cleaned fridge. Opening the screen door, she sat herself on the porch, resting the beer beside herself. The sun was hidden behind thick grayish clouds, the air smelling faintly of rain again. Munching on her sandwich and sipping on the beer Catherine construed the plans of further action.

She decided she would go look for a real estate agent as soon as possible and try to put the house on sale. She wasn't sure how well she'll fare off. Despite cleaning the place, it still looked pretty much a wreck. Taking another satisfying swig of beer, her attention was drawn to the pickup truck that was speeding down the street. It was the first car she's seen in the past 20 minutes she noted.

The truck suddenly came to a halt in front of her neighbors' house. She could hear loud music and laughter booming through open windows. A minute or so after, the door of the truck opened, a bare, feminine leg coming into Catherine's view.

She watched with interest as the person half-exited the car and leaned back inside.  The girl's upper body was still out of her view, and she was laughing at something the other person said in the car. Catherine noticed she was wearing skimpy shorts that barely covered her bottom. The raven haired girl cocked her head a bit to the side admiring the physique of the girl. Her eyes roamed the girl's long legs, and the curve of her ass.

Catherine was disrupted from the lustful thoughts that started forming in her head as the girl moved step back from the car and closed the door with a thud. Her white wife beater was tied into a knot, revealing a bit of her stomach. Her light brown hair was parted on the side, covering a part of her face.

Could it be? Catherine straightened a bit taken aback by the possibility that she just checked out her little, innocent friend.

Only she doesn't seem that little to me anymore, Catherine thought to herself as she squinted her eyes trying to confirm her suspicions that the girl was indeed Emily. Or innocent, she mentally added as she saw the girl lighting a cigarette. Peering over her shoulder as if sensing someone watching her, the girl noticed Catherine sitting on the porch. Her hand froze in the air holding the cigarette midway to her mouth.

Catherine stood up from the porch, causing the girl to take a curious step toward her house. Young woman's hazel eyes were widened in shock as she stared at Catherine.

"Hello Emily."